January 15, 2008
The Best of CES 2008 [Roundup]
CES is filled with thousands of gadgets and lots of people to talk to. But most of these "new" products are really just moderate updates. So in case you missed the goodies in the wave of CES news, here's just our favorite stuff after the jump. Yes, lazy people'"life takes care of you again! 
Biggest TV: Panasonic's 150-inch TV We love it because: It makes us feel small. Trouble is: You have to build your house around this TV. 
Almost Big Enough: 31-inch OLED We Love it because: OLED is the future, it's thinner, faster, deeper. Trouble is: These prototypes are years away from being affordable. 
Best Media Player: iRiver Media Players We Love it because: We thought they were all concepts, but they're not. They're just incredible. 
Best TV Tech: Tie: 9mm Plasma the Blackest and Mitsubishi's Laser TV because it uses lasers. We love it because: Pioneer's plasmas literally eat light. Lasers, cool. Trouble is: Are we going to have to replace our plasma every year? 
Coolest Geek: Bill Gates Playing With Dolls Like in Spaceballs and on Windows Sucking We love him because: Without him we wouldn't be here. Trouble is: He's retiring! And when we asked him to play racquetball, Gates said he'd be washing his hair...for the next 30 years. 
Making the Format War Irrelevant: Samsung BP-U5500 We love it because: It makes the format war go away. Trouble is: The format war may already be irrelevant. Best for those already entrenched in HD DVD 
Best Ambush: Blu-ray Winning the War by getting Warner to announce a change to Blu Jan 4th. We love it because: Sony plays a good game of chess. Trouble is: We prefer HD-DVD! 
Nameless Women We Love: Non-Booth Babe Babes We love them because: Women should not be on display like TVs at this show. Trouble is: We can't stare at them without feeling a little guilty. 
Most Deceptively Dangerous Gadget: Leopard Skin Taser with built in MP3 player We love it because: It's the Frankenstein of gadgets. Trouble is: We want to run it out of town with pitchforks and torches. 
Best Ghetto Fabulous TV: Vizio HDTV with Silicon Optix Reon inside We love it because: A budget company went for some high end video scaling gear. Trouble is: Can the rest of the set keep up with the Silicon Optix? Reon chip? 
Best Follow Up to Steve Jobs' Favorite Cameras: Camcorders Panasonic HDC-SD9 We love it because: Tiny, 1080p, under $1000. Trouble is: Sony+Canon=competition. 
Best Propaganda: Microsoft-at-Home Server Book Low blow, Microsoft (which means it was perfect). Sweetest Laptop 
Asus Eee PC, 8.9-inch We love it because: The only thing wrong with our Eee is the screen size. Trouble is: Like Viagra bottles tell us, erections lasting over 8 hours require doctor consultations. 
Best Insulting Robot This Guy War with robots? It's freakin' on! You'd better grow some lasers fast before we kick your... 
Best UMPC Aigo Silverthorne-based system We love it because: Intel Silverthorne chipset makes it tiny. Trouble is: The early version we saw needs some polish. 
Hottest Peripheral Lasonic iPod Boombox We love it because: Minimalist design is played out. Trouble is: Boomboxes are too big for today's weak geeks to tote anywhere. 
Most Pants-Worthy Phone Sony Ericsson W350 We love it because: It has a sexy, thin design that takes a chance. Trouble is: CES was absolute crap for phones. 
Best Couch Masturbation Enabler: FyreTV We love it because: "Quick draws" are rewarded with cheap viewing. Trouble is: It's not disguised as a PS3 or something else that our kids/wives will never touch. 
Biggest Surprise: Optimus Maximus Keyboard We loved it because: We considered the hype met. OLED keys make our geek hearts palpitate. Trouble is: People whining about the price'"like a Ferrari, just because we can't afford it doesn't mean we don't want one. And that's CES my friends! Writing by Brian Lam and Mark Wilson.
From The Best of CES 2008 [Roundup]
Posted by Gary at 09:14 AM
January 08, 2008
Video: Texas Instruments' Wee Picoprojector for Projecting on the Go [Small
We got a chance to check out the picoprojector that Texas Instruments is working on, both in a cellphone and as a standalone device. The picture that it puts up isn't amazing, but you wouldn't be watching HD movies using this thing anyways. It could be useful for business travelers who want to do easy presentations as well as regular consumers who want to share short videos and pictures with their friends. There are no concrete plans to actually put this tech into, you know, devices you can buy, but hey, they're working on it so you've gotta assume they plan to get paid for it at some point.
From Video: Texas Instruments' Wee Picoprojector for Projecting on the Go [Small
Posted by Greg at 02:35 PM
December 22, 2007
Nokia N-Gage First Access Gaming Platform Delayed Until 2008
Nokia's "First Access" service that would let N81 owners play the 2nd Generation N-Gage games has been delayed until 2008, citing issues that they discovered via their 1000 global testers. We actually tested this new N-Gage platform earlier this year, and found it kind of to be like an Xbox Live Lite for mobiles. It seems (from this patent) that Nokia is seriously thinking about beefing up the N-Gage experience, and a successful launch sans bugs goes a big way into doing so. [N-Gage Blog]
From Nokia N-Gage First Access Gaming Platform Delayed Until 2008
Posted by Russell at 08:12 AM
December 10, 2007
All Giz Wants: A Real Universal Remote
All Giz Wants isn't about wanting what we have now. It's about wanting what we should have now, what's technically possible but practically improbable. Here's an item I've been (wet) dreaming about for some time'"a universal remote that's really universal. I don't mean to control both a Blu-ray player and an HD DVD player. I mean to control my TV, computer and the air popper. This is what I imagine: an IR/various 2.4Ghz technology remote with a touchscreen interface to control the more basic functions of any electronic device I own. Here's what it would have: ' A touchscreen interface would work perfectly here. On/Off should always be in the same spots right on top with some sort of standard button layout ala Harmony, or layouts could graphically mimic the devices I want to control for a more intuitive system with less reading. Want to turn on the shower? Then just twist the on-screen knob. Turning off the lights? Just flick the switch. ' Proximity sensing could automatically pick up local "favorite" items for me to control. That way I'm not searching through menus all the time. ' Trigger activated voice recognition is a must for the most simple commands. Just like I'm calling in for an air strike, I could walkie talkie "teapot on!" ' Obviously consumer electronics manufacturers would need to decide on some standards. But they can have a choice: IR, 802.11n and Bluetooth will all be in my little remote. Actually, no. Screw IR. We're officially in the future and I never want to worry about line of site again...we'll keep it for backward compatibility. ' Two button syncing. You activate the device while you activate the remote. Done. ' Fingerprint recognition activation keeps it more secure than you bank account. ' Oh, and maybe my cellphone should be in this thing, too. That way I can lose both the remote and my mobile at the same time. And besides, it's already got my touch screen, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and super-kinetic-recharging battery (sorry, forgot to mention that). Monster Cable's attempt to control your home theater's lighting system wasn't bad, but we need to multiply that idea by about 1,000. We shouldn't need fancy, expensive home automation to make this work. Most of us already have our own Wi-Fi networks, and face it, wall controls are so 1980s. If someone could invent this by Christmas and leave it on my doorstep, that'd be just great.
From All Giz Wants: A Real Universal Remote
Posted by Michael at 12:27 PM
November 30, 2007
Exploding Cellphone Determined to Not Be Cause of Death of Korean Worker
The South Korean man who was reportedly killed by an exploding cellphone battery, well, wasn't. Apparently the damage to his lungs, heart, spine and ribs was too extensive to be caused by one measly cellphone. Still, he did have a melted phone in his breast pocket and they aren't quite sure how exactly he got so messed up, but they're pretty certain it wasn't just his phone. Any hypotheses, super sleuths? [Yahoo News]
From Exploding Cellphone Determined to Not Be Cause of Death of Korean Worker
Posted by Lorren at 09:48 AM
November 20, 2007
Vodaphone Germany Halts T-Mobile iPhone Sales
European wireless provider Vodafone on Monday obtained a Court order that requires rival T-Mobile Germany to sell Apple Inc.'s iPhone handset to Germans without a service plan. [AppleInsider
From Vodaphone Germany Halts T-Mobile iPhone Sales
Posted by Matt at 04:17 PM
November 17, 2007
Breaking: T-Mobile Pulling Sidekick Slide From Product Line [T-Mobile Pulls Sidekick
In light of the Sidekick Slide's recent problems, T-Mobile is pulling the Sidekick Slide from its product line. Readers are reporting the Slide is no longer on the T-Mobile product site, and anonymous inside sources are confirming the Slide has been . This is convenient, seeing as Fridays (not to mention Friday night), are the best day to announce a story like this with the least news impact. More to come as we get more info. [Sidekick Slide on Giz]
From Breaking: T-Mobile Pulling Sidekick Slide From Product Line [T-Mobile Pulls Sidekick
Posted by Richard at 08:28 AM
November 16, 2007
Google Android App is Like a Star Trek Tricorder For Finding Your Friends [Android
Here's a demo of the potential of the Google Android platform, where Skypop CEO Bruce Leak and CTO Timo Bruck have already made some headway with some interesting applications. The two Silicon Valley developers compare one of their apps to a tricorder sensing device from Star Trek , but instead of scanning for environmental conditions, medical symptoms and lifeforms like the tricorder, they've already started putting together cellphone applications that can find your friends out in the ether. These guys are already starting to create some creative games, too, all while the CEO wears shorts and works out a lot. Must be nice. Now we want to know what they're really up to. [YouTube]
From Google Android App is Like a Star Trek Tricorder For Finding Your Friends [Android
Posted by John at 02:50 PM
